Once Upon Dickson tells the story of Dickson Street,
Fayetteville, Arkansas, the colorful and ever-changing link
between the center of town and the University campus. Carefully
researched, it will appeal to a large popular audience of
residents and visitors to the city’s premier entertainment
district and to University personnel and alumni, for whom
it is as memorable in their college experience as Old Main
or Razorback Stadium. In a time when Dickson Street is undergoing
radical change, the book serves as a reminder that the street
has been changing almost from the earliest time in its history.
Residences, churches, public institutions, and businesses
have come, gone, and sometimes come again, but because of
its location, Dickson Street remains at the heart of Fayetteville.

The book contains nearly 370 images, including maps and advertisements.
Historic and recent photographs illustrate the changes along
Dickson Street throughout the twentieth century. Some notable
images are pictures of a great fire in 1911, a class picture
at the Fayetteville Business College, interior photos of businesses
along
the street, photographs of traffic conditions through the
years, and advertisements for businesses long forgotten and
for some still thriving along the street. Residential Dickson
Street, both East and West, is well represented, along
with photos of some of the citizens who lived and worked along
the street.

Anthony
J. Wappel is archivist at the Historic Washington
County Court House and a former staff member of the University
of Arkansas Libraries’ Special Collections Department.
Since his arrival in Fayetteville to attend graduate school
in 1986, he has been a regular visitor to Dickson Street in
a period of great change. He has compiled the history of Dickson
Street from photographs, newspapers, and other documents from
the University libraries, local historical societies, and
courthouse records and has written a narrative of the people,
businesses, and events that made Dickson Street’s history.

Ethel
Simpson has lived in Fayetteville on and off since
1958, and went to the UArk Bowl on her first date in Fayetteville.
Her first date with Vergil Simpson was for beer at George’s.
After their marriage, they taught in Maryland and Louisiana
before returning to Fayetteville in 1969, and she finished
a PhD. in comparative literature
at the U of A. She worked for thirty years in the Special
Collections Department of the University of Arkansas Libraries,
where she acquired an extensive knowledge of the history of
the University. She is the author or editor of five books,
including Image and Reflection, A Pictorial History
of the University ofArkansas.